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M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust chips in funding for new Boys and Girls Club

This is an artist’s rendering of the new Lancaster Drive clubhouse for the local Boys and Girls Club.

The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust announced that it has awarded $350,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of Salem, Marion and Polk Counties to help it build its new clubhouse in the Northeast Lancaster neighborhood. 

“The new Clubhouse will create new opportunities, resources and support for low-income families while creating space to build and grow a sense of community,” said Steve Moore, executive director, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, in a statement. “As one of the only after-school programs for kids and teens in the North Lancaster area, it will provide valuable opportunities for mentorship and youth engagement as well.”

The clubhouse will be over 25,000 square feet and will include a gymnasium, game area, teen space, commercial kitchen, classroom and a multipurpose room. It’ll provide after-school programs and daily support for nearly 4,000 school-age youth in education, art, health, fitness, workforce development and other areas within a one-mile radius.

“The majority of youth in this area come from families below the federal poverty line and the new Clubhouse will be one of the only daily afterschool resources kids have in the area,” said Sue Bloom, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Salem, Marion and Polk Counties, in a statement. “This new club will help us provide a safe space for kids to not only learn but grow into everything they are meant to be as a successful, caring member of our community. We are so thankful to have the support of the Murdock Trust.”

The club is planning to open in spring 2022.

-Jake Thomas